Method and apparatus for managing data in a gaming system

ABSTRACT

A gaming system includes a hard disk drive for storing applications and other data. The hard disk drive has multiple regions for storing different types of data. Each application executed on the gaming system has an associated storage area on the hard disk drive. A console application executing on the gaming system prevents a particular application from accessing data in an area of the hard disk drive that is not associated with the particular application. The gaming system also maintains a list of recently used nicknames to simplify entry of nicknames by a user of the gaming system.

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

[0001] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document containsmaterial which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright ownerhas no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patentdocument or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent andTrademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves allcopyright rights whatsoever.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] This invention relates to gaming systems, and more particularly,to the managing of data stored on a disk drive or other storage devicesin a gaming system.

BACKGROUND

[0003] Gaming systems currently available on the market are capable ofplaying game discs, music CDs, and movie DVDs from a disc drive. Forexample, the Playstation® 2 gaming system from Sony Corporation providesthe ability to play games, music, and video titles from a disc insertedin the console. These gaming systems have limited internal data storagecapacity. Typically, the internal data storage is used to store systemand configuration information, such as the local time, the languagepreference of the user, and other settings. Other data, such as savedgame data and other game-specific data, is generally stored on a memorydevice that is external to the game console. For example, memory unitsthat are inserted into a handheld game controller store game informationfor later retrieval by a game console. Existing gaming systems do notcontain an internal non-removable hard disk drive for storing savedgames and other information.

[0004] Microsoft Corporation recently announced its Xbox™ video gamingsystem that is equipped with a hard disk drive to enhance gaming, andbroadband connectivity to facilitate online gaming. With theseadditions, significant amounts of data (e.g., saved game data frommultiple game titles and multiple users of the gaming system) can bestored within the video gaming system using the hard disk drive. Thisnew internal storage capability creates new issues with respect tostoring and segregating different types of data on the hard disk drive.Further, data associated with a particular game title should beprotected from inadvertent or intentional corruption by another gametitle or application.

[0005] Accordingly, there is a need for an improved data handlingmechanism for gaming systems that include an internal data storagedevice, such as a hard disk drive.

SUMMARY

[0006] A gaming system includes a hard disk drive for storing variousdata. The gaming system applies a storage hierarchy to the hard diskdrive to prevent unauthorized access to data stored on the hard diskdrive. The hard disk drive is segregated into different logical regionssuch that each region stores a particular type of data and has specificdata access policies. Each application that executes on the gamingsystem has a unique identifier and is provided with a separate areawithin certain regions for storing data related to the application. Theseparate areas provided for each application are based on theapplication's unique identifier. The gaming system also maintains a listof recently used nicknames to simplify user-entry of nicknames (e.g., ahigh-score entry for a game).

[0007] In the described implementation, the gaming system includes agame console and one or more controllers. The game console is equippedwith a processor and a non-removable hard disk drive coupled to theprocessor. The game console may also include a memory, a portable mediadrive configured to communicate with a storage disc, one or moreportable memory units, and broadband connectivity. In otherimplementations, the hard disk drive is configured to store game data,audio data, and video data.

[0008] A console application stored on the hard disk drive implements auser interface to allow user interaction with the gaming system. Thegame console boots into the console application upon power up or systemreset. The console application also performs various functions necessaryto operate the gaming system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009]FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary gaming system.

[0010]FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the gaming system.

[0011]FIG. 3 illustrates a network gaming system in which the FIG. 1gaming system is connected via a network to other consoles and services.

[0012]FIG. 4 illustrates an example hard disk drive containing fiveseparate regions.

[0013]FIG. 5 illustrates exemplary data stored in two different regionsof a hard disk drive.

[0014]FIG. 6 illustrates exemplary saved game data stored in a user dataregion of a hard disk drive.

[0015]FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of a process that stores game-relateddata in appropriate regions of a hard disk drive.

[0016]FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of a process that manages variousnicknames entered by users of the gaming system.

[0017]FIG. 9 illustrates a graphical user interface depicting anexemplary game selection menu.

[0018]FIG. 10 illustrates a graphical user interface depicting anexample display of information related to saved games.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] The method and apparatus described herein provides a hard diskstorage hierarchy that is enforced to ensure proper storage of data andto prevent unauthorized access to stored data in a gaming system. Theaddition of a hard disk drive to a gaming system significantly increasesthe amount of data that can be stored within the gaming system. Tomanage this data, the hard disk drive's storage capacity is separatedinto different regions, where each region stores a particular type ofdata and has specific data access policies. The data access policiesdetermine which applications are permitted to access a particular typeof data. For example, a hard disk drive may contain a settings region, auser data region, an application data region, a utility region, and aconsole application region.

[0020] Each application that executes on the gaming system is providedwith a separate area (such as a subdirectory) within the appropriateregions for storing data related to the application. Each application isrestricted to viewing and accessing data in its own areas, therebypreventing accidental corruption of data associated with differentapplications. A console application is executed by the gaming system inaddition to other applications (such as games, music applications, andmovie applications). The console application performs various functionsnecessary to operate the gaming system, such as implementing a userinterface, performing configuration operations, and performing variousmanagement functions. Console application data and configurationsettings are stored in separate regions of the hard disk drive that arenot generally accessible to applications other than the user interfaceapplication and configuration applications. The gaming system alsostores recently used nicknames for entry in, for example, high-scorelistings. A user of the gaming system can select among the storednicknames rather than entering the same name each time a game islaunched or each time a high score is achieved.

[0021]FIG. 1 shows an exemplary gaming system 100. The gaming system 100includes a game console 102 and up to four controllers, as representedby controllers 104(1) and 104(2). The game console 102 is equipped withan internal hard disk drive and a portable media drive 106 that supportsvarious forms of portable storage media as represented by opticalstorage disc 108. Examples of suitable portable storage media includeDVD, CD-ROM, game discs, and so forth.

[0022] The game console 102 has four slots 110 on its front face tosupport up to four controllers, although the number and arrangement ofslots may be modified. A power button 112 and an eject button 114 arealso positioned on the front face of the game console 102. The powerbutton 112 switches power to the game console and the eject button 114alternately opens and closes a tray of the portable media drive 106 toallow insertion and extraction of the storage disc 108.

[0023] The game console 102 connects to a television or other display(not shown) via A/V interfacing cables 120. A power cable 122 providespower to the game console. The game console 102 may further beconfigured with broadband capabilities, as represented by the cable ormodem connector 124 to facilitate access to a network, such as theInternet.

[0024] Each controller 104 is coupled to the game console 102 via a wireor wireless interface. In the illustrated implementation, thecontrollers are USB (Universal Serial Bus) compatible and are connectedto the console 102 via serial cables 130. The controller 102 may beequipped with any of a wide variety of user interaction mechanisms. Asillustrated in FIG. 1, each controller 104 is equipped with twothumbsticks 132(1) and 132(2), a D-pad 134, buttons 136, and twotriggers 138. These mechanisms are merely representative, and otherknown gaming mechanisms may be substituted for or added to those shownin FIG. 1.

[0025] A memory unit (MU) 140 may be inserted into the controller 104 orthe game console 102 to provide additional and portable storage.Portable memory units enable users to store game parameters and portthem for play on other consoles. For example, a user can save a game toa memory unit 140 using a particular game console then use that savedgame data with a game executed on a different game console. In thedescribed implementation, each controller is configured to accommodatetwo memory units 140, although more or less than two units may beemployed in other implementations. A particular game console 102 may beconfigured to accommodate any number of memory units 140.

[0026] The gaming system 100 is capable of playing, for example, games,music, and videos. With the different storage offerings, titles can beplayed from the hard disk drive or the portable medium 108 in drive 106,from an online source, or from a memory unit 140. A sample of what thegaming system 100 is capable of playing back include:

[0027] 1. Game titles played from CD and DVD discs, from the hard diskdrive, or from an online source.

[0028] 2. Digital music played from a CD in the portable media drive106, from a file on the hard disk drive (e.g., Windows Media Audio (WMA)format), or from online streaming sources.

[0029] 3. Digital audio/video played from a DVD disc in the portablemedia drive 106, from a file on the hard disk drive (e.g., ActiveStreaming Format), or from online streaming sources.

[0030]FIG. 2 shows functional components of the gaming system 100 inmore detail. The game console 102 has a central processing unit (CPU)200 and a memory controller 202 that facilitates processor access tovarious types of memory, including a flash ROM (Read Only Memory) 204, aRAM (Random Access Memory) 206, a hard disk drive 208, and the portablemedia drive 106. The CPU 200 is equipped with a level 1 cache 210 and alevel 2 cache 212 to temporarily store data and hence reduce the numberof memory access cycles, thereby improving processing speed andthroughput.

[0031] The CPU 200, memory controller 202, and various memory devicesare interconnected via one or more buses, including serial and parallelbuses, a memory bus, a peripheral bus, and a processor or local bususing any of a variety of bus architectures. By way of example, sucharchitectures can include an Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, aMicro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, an Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, aVideo Electronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and aPeripheral Component Interconnects (PCI) bus, also known as a Mezzaninebus.

[0032] As one suitable implementation, the CPU 200, memory controller202, ROM 204, and RAM 206 are integrated onto a common module 214. Inthis implementation, ROM 204 is configured as a flash ROM that isconnected to the memory controller 202 via a PCI (Peripheral ComponentInterconnect) bus and a ROM bus (neither of which are shown). RAM 206 isconfigured as multiple DDR SDRAM (Double Data Rate Synchronous DynamicRAM) that are independently controlled by the memory controller 202 viaseparate buses (not shown). The hard disk drive 208 and portable mediadrive 106 are connected to the memory controller via the PCI bus and anATA (AT Attachment) bus 216.

[0033] A 3D graphics processing unit 220 and a video encoder 222 form avideo processing pipeline for high speed and high resolution graphicsprocessing. Data is carried from the graphics processing unit 220 to thevideo encoder 222 via a digital video bus (not shown). An audioprocessing unit 224 and an audio codec (coder/decoder) 226 form acorresponding audio processing pipeline with high fidelity and stereoprocessing. Audio data is carried between the audio processing unit 224and the audio codec 226 via a communication link (not shown). The videoand audio processing pipelines output data to an A/V (audio/video) port228 for transmission to the television or other display. In theillustrated implementation, the video and audio processing components220-228 are mounted on the module 214.

[0034] Also implemented on the module 214 are a USB host controller 230and a network interface 232. The USB host controller 230 is coupled tothe CPU 200 and the memory controller 202 via a bus (e.g., PCI bus) andserves as host for the peripheral controllers 104(1)-104(4). The networkinterface 232 provides access to a network (e.g., the Internet, homenetwork, etc.) and may be any of a wide variety of various wired orwireless interface components including an Ethernet card, a modem, aBluetooth module, a cable modem, and the like.

[0035] The game console 102 has two dual controller supportsubassemblies 240(1) and 240(2), with each subassembly supporting twogame controllers 104(1)-104(4). A front panel I/O subassembly 242supports the functionality of the power button 112 and the eject button114, as well as any LEDs (light emitting diodes) or other indicatorsexposed on the outer surface of the game console. The subassemblies240(1), 240(2), and 242 are coupled to the module 214 via one or morecable assemblies 244.

[0036] Eight memory units 140(1)-140(8) are illustrated as beingconnectable to the four controllers 104(1)-104(4), i.e., two memoryunits for each controller. Each memory unit 140 offers additionalstorage on which games, game parameters, and other data may be stored.When inserted into a controller, the memory unit 140 can be accessed bythe memory controller 202. Additionally, one or more memory units 140may be inserted into game console 102 and accessed by the memorycontroller 202.

[0037] A system power supply module 250 provides power to the componentsof the gaming system 100. A fan 252 cools the circuitry within the gameconsole 102.

[0038] The game console 102 implements a uniform media portal model thatprovides a consistent user interface and navigation hierarchy to moveusers through various entertainment areas. The portal model offers aconvenient way to access content from multiple different mediatypes—game data, audio data, and video data—regardless of the media typeinserted into the portable media drive 106.

[0039] To implement the uniform media portal model, a console userinterface (UI) application 260 is stored on the hard disk drive 208.When the game console is powered on, various portions of the consoleapplication 260 are loaded into RAM 206 and/or caches 210, 212 andexecuted on the CPU 200. The console application 260 presents agraphical user interface that provides a consistent user experience whennavigating to different media types available on the game console. Thus,the hard disk drive 208 (and the data stored thereon) is an importantpart of the initialization process. If the hard disk drive 208 is notfunctioning properly, the gaming system 100 may not boot successfully.

[0040] The gaming system 100 may be operated as a standalone system bysimply connecting the system to a television or other display. In thisstandalone mode, the gaming system 100 allows one or more players toplay games, watch movies, or listen to music. However, with theintegration of broadband connectivity made available through the networkinterface 232, the gaming system 100 may further be operated as aparticipant in a larger network gaming community.

[0041]FIG. 3 shows an exemplary network gaming environment 300 thatinterconnects multiple gaming systems 100(1), . . . , 100(g) via anetwork 302. The network 302 represents any of a wide variety of datacommunications networks. It may include public portions (e.g., theInternet) as well as private portions (e.g., a residential Local AreaNetwork (LAN)), as well as combinations of public and private portions.Network 302 may be implemented using any one or more of a wide varietyof conventional communications media including both wired and wirelessmedia. Any of a wide variety of communications protocols can be used tocommunicate data via network 302, including both public and proprietaryprotocols. Examples of such protocols include TCP/IP, IPX/SPX, NetBEUI,etc.

[0042] In addition to gaming systems 100, one or more online services304(1), . . . , 304(s) may be accessible via the network 302 to providevarious services for the participants, such as hosting online games,serving downloadable music or video files, hosting gaming competitions,serving streaming audio/video files, and the like. The network gamingenvironment 300 may further involve a key distribution center 306 thatplays a role in authenticating individual players and/or gaming systems100 to one another as well as online services 304. The distributioncenter 306 distributes keys and service tickets to valid participantsthat may then be used to form games amongst multiple players or topurchase services from the online services 304.

[0043] The network gaming environment 300 introduces another memorysource available to individual gaming systems 100—online storage. Inaddition to the portable storage medium 108, the hard disk drive 208,and the memory unit(s) 140, the gaming system 100(1) can also accessdata files available at remote storage locations via the network 302, asexemplified by remote storage 308 at online service 304(s).

[0044]FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary hard disk drive 400 containingfive separate regions. In this example, the five hard disk drive regionsare: a settings region 402, a user data region 404, an application dataregion 406, a utility region 408, and a console application region 410.The regions shown in FIG. 4 are provided as an example. In alternateimplementations, a hard disk drive may contain any number of regions.

[0045] As discussed below, each region stores a particular type of dataand has specific data access policies that restrict data access to thoseapplications that are intended to access that type of data. The fiveregions represent a logical segregation of the hard disk drive and donot necessarily correspond to physical divisions or physical partitionsof the hard disk drive. One or more applications (e.g., the consoleapplication) executed by the gaming system maintain and support thislogical segregation of the hard disk drive into multiple regions.

[0046] The settings region 402 is used to store system state andconfiguration information used by the gaming system. Third-partyapplications (such as game applications, music applications and movieapplications) are denied direct access to the settings region 402.Applications requiring data stored in the settings region 402 requestsuch data through API (application program interface) calls. The storagespace allocated to the settings region 402 is managed by the consoleapplication 260. The settings region data is stored outside the filesystem and is accessed using sector level input and output commands.This configuration reduces the risk of data corruption and undesiredaccess to settings data. The settings region 402 is protected using achecksum to ensure that the settings data is not corrupted and, ifnecessary, can survive a complete system restoration procedure.

[0047] The user data region 404 is used to store user data on the gamingsystem. User data may include, for example, game data saved by a user ofthe gaming system or picture files saved by a user. The data in the userdata region 404 is organized into a specific hierarchy. Applications arerequired to conform to this hierarchy. In one implementation,applications must conform to the specific hierarchy before theapplication is certified to execute on the gaming system. If theapplication is not certified to execute on the gaming system, the gamingsystem will reject any attempt to execute the application on the gamingsystem. Typically, the certification process is performed by themanufacturer of the gaming system.

[0048] In addition to storing user data in the user data region 404 ofthe hard disk drive 208, user data may also be stored in one or morememory units 140 (FIG. 1) coupled to one or more controllers 104 or thegame console 102.

[0049] The application data region 406 is used to store persistent dataused by various applications that are executed by the gaming system. Thedata stored in the application data region 406 is created at varioustimes during the execution of the application. This data is typicallystored without the user's knowledge. The data stored in region 406allows the application to maintain data across multiple game sessionswithout requiring the data to be associated with a particular savedgame. In a particular implementation, music files (e.g., WMA files) aresaved in the application data region.

[0050] Exemplary data stored in the application data region 406 includesupdated player rosters, game updates, new game levels, skid marks on aroad, damage to a building or object, or other changes that aremaintained by the application. Skid marks and damage to a building areexamples of “environmental changes” to the game that are applied eachtime the game is executed, including executing saved games. Eachapplication is provided with a separate storage area (e.g.,subdirectory) within the application data region 406 to store itsapplication data. Generally, only the application that saved thespecific data in the application data region 406 is permitted to deletethat specific data. However, if a user of the gaming system indicates adesire to delete all data related to a particular application, the datain the application data region 406 associated with the particularapplication will be deleted.

[0051] In one implementation, the user data 404 and the application data406 is stored in a single partition of the hard disk drive 400. Thisallows each application to use any portion of the data storage capacityprovided by the partition. Each application uses a portion of theoverall storage capacity of the partition. In this implementation,applications are not restricted to using a particular portion of thepartition's total storage capacity. This configuration providesflexibility to the application (and the application developer) byallowing the application to use the amount of storage space desired.This configuration also reduces problems caused by limiting storagespace allocated to each application. When applications are limited to aparticular storage area, they may run out of storage space even thoughother applications are not using their entire storage allotment.Providing a single partition shared by all applications, reduces thelikelihood that a particular application will not have sufficientstorage space to execute properly.

[0052] The utility region 408 is used to store any data desired by theapplication. The utility region 408 can be used in any way by theapplication and the gaming system does not impose any restrictions onthe use of the utility region by the application. Thus, each applicationis able to use its assigned utility region 408 in any manner that theapplication developer desires. Applications may use utility region 408for caching data or creating a virtual memory space. The utility region408 is for temporary storage of data. A particular application cannot becertain that the same data will be available the next time theapplication is executed.

[0053] In one implementation, three separate utility regions 408 areprovided on the hard disk drive. Each utility region 408 contains 750Megabytes of storage space and is used by a different application tostore various data. When an application is launched, the gaming systemdetermines whether one of the three utility regions 408 containsinformation stored by the same application during a previous executionof the application. If so, that same utility region 408 and the datapreviously stored by the application is assigned to the application foruse during the current execution of the application. If none of theutility regions 408 contain information stored by the same application,the system determines whether one of the utility regions is empty. Ifso, the empty utility region is assigned to the application. Otherwise,the utility region with the oldest data is cleared (i.e., all data inthe utility region is deleted) and assigned to the application for useduring the current execution of the application.

[0054] When an application begins using one of the three utility regions408, a timestamp is applied to the particular utility region being used.The timestamp identifies the application using the utility region 408(e.g., the application title) and the time that the application accessedthe utility region. The three utility regions 408 are aged out using aleast recently used (LRU) algorithm. If an application is requesting autility region 408, but all utility regions contain data, none of whichis associated with the requesting application, then the LRU algorithmdeletes the data from the utility region having the oldest timestamp.This automated process relieves the user (and the application developer)from managing this temporary storage space.

[0055] An application may identify whether it wants the data in theutility region 408 saved for future reference or deleted when theapplication is terminated. If the data is deleted, the utility regionwill be made available to another application. If the data is saved, thedata will be available to the application the next time it is executedunless the LRU algorithm ages out the data stored in that utility regionbefore the next execution of the application.

[0056] The console application region 410 is used to store various dataused during execution of the console application, such as user interfacedata. Other applications are prevented from accessing the data stored inthe console application region 410. In a particular implementation, theconsole application region 410 is stored in a separate partition of thehard disk drive 400 to reduce the likelihood that data stored in theconsole application region would become corrupted.

[0057] As shown in FIG. 4, various types of data are stored in thedifferent regions of hard disk drive 400. However, other storage devicesin the gaming system 100 may be restricted in the content they store. Inone implementation, memory unit 140 is limited to storing saved gamedata associated with one or more games. Since the various gaming systemsettings and configuration data is specific to each gaming system, thatdata need not be distributed to other gaming systems (e.g., throughportable memory unit 140). Instead, other gaming systems should rely ontheir own system settings and configuration data stored on their ownhard disk drive or other internal storage device. Thus, when a userrequests to save a game or other application data to memory unit 140,the data stored on the memory unit is limited to the data necessary torecreate the state of the game or other application at a later time. Bylimiting memory unit 140 to saving, for example, saved game data but noconfiguration data, the user is presented with a simple list of savedgame data rather than a mixed list of saved game data and otherconfiguration data that is not required by the user.

[0058]FIG. 5 illustrates exemplary data stored in two different regions,user data region 404 and application data region 406, of hard disk drive400. Each region of the disk drive may be further segregated intodifferent sections or storage areas (e.g., subdirectories) that areassociated with a particular application. This further segregationensures that data associated with a particular application is notaccessed or modified by another application, thereby maintaining theintegrity of the data associated with each application that is executedby the gaming system.

[0059] In the example of FIG. 5, the user data region 404 and theapplication data region 406 store data related to multiple gameapplications (referred to as “Game A”, “Game B”, etc.). User data region404 includes four sections, one for each game's saved data, labeledSaved Game A Data 502, Saved Game B Data 504, Saved Game C Data 506, andSaved Game N Data 508. A particular user data region 404 may contain anynumber of sections, each of which is associated with a particular gameor other application. A particular application is permitted to accessdata associated with that application, but prevented from accessing ormodifying data that is associated with a different application. Forexample, Game A can access data stored in section 502. However, Game Ais prevented from accessing data stored in any of sections 504, 506, or508 because that data is associated with a different game.

[0060] Application data region 406 includes four sections, one for eachapplication's saved data, labeled Game A Data 510, Game B Data 512, GameC Data 514, and Game N Data 516. As discussed above, the applicationdata region is used by applications to store persistent data generatedby the application. A particular application data region 406 can containany number of sections, each of which is associated with a particulargame or other application. Each application is limited to accessing datafrom the section of region 406 that is associated with the application.For example, Game B can access Game B Data stored in section 512, but isprevented from accessing data in any of sections 510, 514, or 516because that data is associated with a different game.

[0061]FIG. 6 illustrates exemplary saved game data 502 stored in theuser data region 404 of hard disk drive 400. In this example, the savedgame data 502 includes three sets of saved game data, labeled FirstSaved Game 602, Second Saved Game 604, and Third Saved Game 606. Allthree sets of saved game data 602-606 are related to the same gameapplication (i.e., Game A). Each set of saved game data corresponds to adifferent “save game” command executed by a user of the gaming console.For example, each set of saved game data 602-606 may have been createdon different days or created when the user of the gaming system reacheda new level in the game. The saved game data 602-606 allows the user torestart the game application at the same location in the game (i.e.,same game level, score, settings, etc.) as when the game was saved. Aparticular game application may create any number of sets of saved gamedata based on user requests to save the current state of the game. Allsaved game data related to a particular game (e.g., Game A) is stored inthe same section (e.g., Saved Game A Data 502), which simplifiesidentification of the desired saved game.

[0062] Listed below are example directories used to store data on harddisk drive 400 in the gaming system. Similar directory structures can beused to store data on memory units 140 or other storage devices used bythe gaming system.

[0063] ROOT\Udata\0FFFAB12 \FFE62\<saved game files>

[0064] ROOT\Udata\0FFFAB12 \F4B1A\<saved game files>

[0065] ROOT\Udata \0FFFAB12 \<saved data>

[0066] The first two directories identified above store various savedgame data files for a particular game application. The “Udata” directoryoff from the root represents the user data region 404 of the hard diskdrive 400. The next entry “OFFFAB12” is a subdirectory of the user dataregion 404, and is associated with a particular application. In thisexample, “OFFFAB12” represents the hash of the title of a game. Eachgame should generate a different hash value such that each subdirectoryis unique. Alternatively, a unique game identifier may be used as thesubdirectory name.

[0067] The next entries “FFE62” and “F4B1A” each represent a particularsaved game subdirectory. Various data files associated with each savedgame are stored in each subdirectory. A new subdirectory is created eachtime the user of the 15 gaming system initiates a save game operation.The new subdirectory stores the various saved game data generated bythat save game operation. The entries “FFE62” and “F4B1A” are generatedby hashing various information about the saved game (such as the name ofthe saved game, the date the game was saved, the time the game wassaved, or the game level when the game was saved). In oneimplementation, the entries “FFE62” and “F4B1A” are generated by hashingthe name of the saved game. Alternatively a combined date and time codemay be used to generate unique subdirectory names.

[0068] The third directory identified above stores additional datarelated to the game “OFFFAB12”. The “Tdata” directory off from the rootrepresents the application data region 406 of the hard disk drive 400.Since the data stored in the application data region 406 generallyapplies to the game itself and not to particular saved games, there areno subdirectories off from “OFFFAB12”.

[0069] A new subdirectory is created under “Udata” and “Tdata” each timea new application is executed by the gaming system. When an applicationis executed, the gaming system first checks for existing subdirectoriesassociated with the application. If subdirectories already exist for theapplication, those subdirectories, and their corresponding data, areassigned to the application. However, if no subdirectories exist for theapplication, the console application creates the appropriatesubdirectories for the application to use.

[0070] Although many different subdirectories may extend from “Udata”and “Tdata”, a particular application only sees data and subdirectoriescontained under the application's particular subdirectory. Thus, theapplication is unable to see the entire directory structure or identifyother applications that have associated subdirectories stored on thehard disk drive. These restrictions on data access prevent anapplication from intentionally or inadvertently corrupting dataassociated with another application.

[0071] In certain situations, the gaming system may allow an applicationto access data associated with a different application. For example, ifa new version of an application is released, it may generate a differentidentifier than the previous version of the application, and thus beassociated with a different set of subdirectories. In this example, thegaming system (e.g., the console application) can map or redirect thenew version of the application to the subdirectories associated with theold version of the application, thereby allowing the new version of theapplication to access data stored by the old version of the application.

[0072] In another example, an application from a particular manufacturermay be permitted to access data associated with a different applicationfrom the same manufacturer. In this example, the manufacturer is giventhe responsibility of properly handling the data generated by itsapplications.

[0073]FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of a process 700 that stores game-relateddata in appropriate regions of a hard disk drive. The process 700 isimplemented in perform the operations illustrated as blocks. Initially,a game is launched from the gaming system (block 702). A game can belaunched by inserting a game disc into portable media drive 106,selecting a game (or a saved game) from the hard disk drive 108 (via auser interface that identifies saved games), selecting a saved game froma memory unit 140, or selecting a game from an online source.

[0074] Next, the process 700 identifies a Game ID associated with thelaunched game (block 704). The Game ID is used by the gaming system todistinguish one game from another and ensure that different games accessthe appropriate sets of data from the hard disk drive 208 and otherstorage devices. In one implementation, the Game ID is assigned by themanufacturer of the gaming system to ensure that all Game IDs areunique. In another implementation, the Game ID is generated by creatinga hash of the game title.

[0075] At block 706, the process 700 creates pointers or othermechanisms to identify the appropriate regions of the hard disk drivebased on the Game ID. For example, a particular game may be permitted toaccess a particular portion of the user data region and a particularportion of the application data region. The pointers direct theapplication to the appropriate portions of the user data region and theapplication data region, but do not allow access to portions of the userdata region and the application data region that are associated withdifferent games. A particular pointer may identify particularsubdirectories on the hard disk drive, as discussed above.

[0076] The process 700 then determines whether a user of the gamingsystem has requested that the current game be saved on the hard diskdrive (block 708). If the user has not requested to save the currentgame, execution of the game continues (block 710). If the user hasrequested that the current game be saved, the process saves the currentstate of the game as a set of data in the user data region of the harddisk drive (block 712). Additionally, other game-related data may bestored to the application data region of the hard disk drive (block714). Although the saving of other game-related data is shown at block714, such activity can occur at any point during the execution of thegame. For example, if a car hits the wall of a race track during a race,the game may record the skid marks and damage to the wall in theapplication data region of the hard disk drive. Thus, the same skidmarks and damage to the wall will be shown in the future when the samegame is executed on the gaming system.

[0077]FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of a process 800 that manages variousnicknames entered by users of the gaming system. The process 800 isimplemented in software as computer-executable instructions that areexecuted by the CPU 200 to perform the operations illustrated as blocks.Nicknames are often used to assign names to characters in a game or toidentify a user's high score. Initially, a game is launched from thegaming system (block 802). The process 800 retrieves a list of recentlyused nicknames (block 804). The list may be ordered such that nicknamesrecently used with the current game are displayed first, and nicknamesused recently with other games are displayed later in the list. Next,the process displays the list of recently used nicknames to the user ofthe gaming system (block 806). The user of the gaming system is thenpresented with the opportunity to select a nickname from the displayedlist or create a new nickname for use in the current game. The process800 determines whether the user selects a name from the nickname list orselects to enter a new nickname (block 808). If the user selected a namefrom the nickname list, the process branches to block 810, where thegame is executed using the selected nickname. If the user selectedentering a new nickname, the process continues to block 812, where theprocedure displays a screen for entering a new nickname. After the userenters a new nickname, the process 800 executes the game using the newnickname and adds the new nickname to the list of recently usednicknames (block 814). If a high-score is achieved (or any other actionrequiring entry of the player's nickname), the selected nickname isautomatically entered as the default name. The user is able to changethe default name if they choose.

[0078]FIG. 9 illustrates a graphical user interface 900 depicting anexemplary game selection menu. The graphical user interface 900 isgenerated by the console application 260 executed by the CPU 200. Thegame selection menu is the area where the user can select from availablegame applications they have previously played on their gaming system.Although this example lists available games, similar user interfacesidentify other types of applications, such as an audio player or a videoplayer. The user interface 900 includes a list 902 of the gamesavailable on the gaming system. A game is an application that has beenpurchased, borrowed, or rented by the user and played on their gamingsystem at least one time. In FIG. 9, the games are shown in horizontaltiles or panes. It is noted that other graphical themes may bealternatively used to represent available games, such as a bookshelf, atoy box, or the like.

[0079] The user interface 900 also includes an orb 904 depicting animage of the currently selected game title and a text panel 906 withinformation about the selected game. In the illustrated example, thegame “Starcraft” is highlighted, resulting in an image of a characterfrom the game “Starcraft” being depicted in orb 904 and informationpertaining to this game being presented in text panel 906. The gamedeveloper is given control of the contents of the orb 904 and text panel906, so the information will vary from one game to another.

[0080] A piece of descriptive text 908 (i.e., “n games”) is positionedbeside the main legend “Games” to indicate the number of games in thelist. The list 902 displays a limited number of games (e.g., eighttitles). When a user first enters the games collection after purchasingtheir gaming system, there will be zero titles in the list 902. Torepresent this, the descriptive text 908 states “0 games” and the textpanel 906 offers a short statement telling the user that future gamesplayed on the console will appear in this area. As the user plays games,they are added to the list 902. When the descriptive text 908 indicatesthat there are more games than shown on list 902 (e.g., n>8), up/downscroll arrows are added to the list 902 to indicate that there areadditional titles not currently shown on the list.

[0081] As noted above, the game developer provides the data used to fillthe orb 904 and text panel 906. When the user plays a game on the gamingsystem for the first time, a number of data elements are copied into theapplication data region of the hard disk drive 208 for use by theapplication during future executions of the application.

[0082] The user can move among games in list 902 by using the up anddown directions of the thumbstick, or some other pre-defined controlmechanism. The list 902 may be configured to wrap or not wrap when theuser reaches the top or the bottom of the list. A select element 910allows the user to select the highlighted game from list 902 using the“A” button on the controller. A back element 912 facilitates navigationback to the previous menu in the user interface. The back element 912 ischosen by pressing the “B” button on the controller, as visually aidedby the letter “b” in the element 912.

[0083]FIG. 10 illustrates a graphical user interface 1000 depicting anexample display of information related to saved games. The userinterface 1000 provides a view of all content data that is currentlyavailable on the selected memory device, such as the hard disk drive.The user interface 1000 depicts a flat list 1002 of games and theircorresponding saved games, soundtracks and their associated tracks, andvideo clips that are stored on the selected memory device. Each file isrepresented by small orbs 1004 arranged in horizontal panes. Each orbhas an image that identifies the contents, such as a game image or thelast scene before the game was saved. The file 1004 has an associatednumber that denotes the total size of the saved game in blocks.

[0084] In the games context, the list of files 1002 is formatted suchthat the game graphic is situated in an orb 1006 located near the titleof the game title (e.g., “Starcraft”). The orb 1006 is selectable andupon selection, performs a multi-select on all of the saved games forthe selected game. Each saved game is selectable as well by navigatingto the desired orb 1004. As before, navigation can be achieved by usingthe left, right, up, and down directions of the thumbstick, or othermechanism. In one implementation, the saved game orbs 1004 are sorted bymost recently saved within each game entry.

[0085] A text panel 1008 offers a richer description of the saved game,audio track, or video clip that is currently focused. In the gamecontext, this description might include the following information:

[0086] Saved Game

[0087] 2D image associated with the saved game

[0088] Game that the saved game belongs to

[0089] Saved game name

[0090] The location (e.g., level) in the game or current mission

[0091] Date and Time the game was saved

[0092] Total size of the saved game

[0093] Multiple Saved Games

[0094] Generic image representing multiple saved games

[0095] Total size of all of the currently selected saved games

[0096] Game Title

[0097] 2D image associated with the game

[0098] Name of the game

[0099] Total number of saved games

[0100] Total size in blocks of the game (sum of saved games, persistentdata, etc.)

[0101] In one implementation, game developers provide certaininformation relating to each saved game such that the user of the gamingsystem can easily identify the saved game they want to play or copy ontoanother storage device, such as memory unit 140. An example of theinformation that a particular application may save when a save gamecommand is executed might include:

[0102] Name of the game associated with the saved game data

[0103] A graphic representation of the location in the game when saved

[0104] A brief description of the game state when saved (e.g., Level3—At the Castle Entrance)

[0105] Date and time the game was saved

[0106] In other implementations, more or less data may be saved inresponse to a save game command.

[0107] In a particular implementation, the gaming system requires thegame developer to use a descriptive name when saving a game. Adescriptive name is something other than, for example, “save.001” or“savegame.b”. Instead, a descriptive name requires, for example, anidentification of the game that created the saved game file and sometype of information relating to the status of the game and/or the dateand time the game was saved. To accommodate this descriptive name, gamedevelopers are permitted to create saved game names of any characterlength and saved game names can use any characters (including symbols,punctuation, etc.). Providing descriptive names with saved games allowsthe user of the gaming system to easily locate the desired saved game.

[0108] A top title pane 1010 provides summary information, such as afriendly name of the storage device (e.g., “Steve's Games”), the memorydevice's total storage space in blocks, and the memory device's storagespace left in blocks. Select and back elements support navigation toother screens.

[0109] Although the invention has been described in language specific tostructural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understoodthat the invention defined in the appended claims is not necessarilylimited to the specific features or acts described. Rather, the specificfeatures and acts are disclosed as exemplary forms of implementing theclaimed invention.

1. A game console, comprising: a processor; and a non-removable harddisk drive coupled to the processor, the hard disk drive beingconfigured to store various data associated with the game console.
 2. Agame console as recited in claim 1 further including a memory coupled tothe processor.
 3. A game console as recited in claim 1 further includinga portable media drive coupled to the processor and configured tocommunicate with a storage disc.
 4. A game console as recited in claim 1further including a console application stored on the hard disk driveand executable on the processor, the console application configured toimplement a user interface to the gaming system.
 5. A game console asrecited in claim 1 further including a portable memory unit coupled tothe processor.
 6. A game console as recited in claim 1 wherein the harddisk drive is configured to store game data, audio data, and video data.7. A game console as recited in claim 1 wherein the hard disk drive issegregated into a plurality of regions, each region for storing aparticular type of data.
 8. A game console as recited in claim 1 whereinthe hard disk drive is segregated into a user data region, anapplication region, and a console application region.
 9. A game consoleas recited in claim 1 wherein the hard disk drive is segregated into asettings region, a user data region, an application region, a utilityregion, and a console application region.
 10. A game console as recitedin claim 1 wherein the hard disk drive is configured to store dataassociated with multiple saved games.
 11. A game console as recited inclaim 1 wherein the hard disk drive is configured to store a list ofrecently used nicknames.
 12. A game console as recited in claim 1wherein the game console boots into a console application stored on thehard disk drive.
 13. A game console, comprising: a processor; and a harddisk drive coupled to the processor, the hard disk drive beingconfigured to boot the game console and to store data associated withthe game console.
 14. A game console as recited in claim 13 wherein thegame console boots into a console application stored on the hard diskdrive.
 15. A game console as recited in claim 13 wherein the hard diskdrive is permanently installed in the game console.
 16. A game consoleas recited in claim 13 further including a memory coupled to theprocessor.
 17. A game console as recited in claim 13 wherein the harddisk drive contains a console application configured to implement a userinterface to the gaming system.
 18. A game console as recited in claim13 further including a console application stored on the hard diskdrive, the console application being configured to generate a listing ofuser data stored on the hard disk drive.
 19. A game console as recitedin claim 13 wherein the hard disk drive is configured to storeapplication data such that data associated with one application isinaccessible to other applications.
 20. A game console as recited inclaim 13 wherein the hard disk drive is configured to store saved gamedata such that saved game data associated with a particular game isstored separately from saved game data associated with other games. 21.A game console as recited in claim 13 wherein the hard disk drive isconfigured to store saved game data in a user data region and configuredto store application-related data in an application data region.
 22. Agame console, comprising: a processor; and a hard disk drive coupled tothe processor, the hard disk drive being segregated into a first regionto store user data and a second region to store application data,wherein user data associated with a particular application is segregatedfrom user data associated with other applications and whereinapplication data associated with a particular application is segregatedfrom application data associated with other applications.
 23. A gameconsole as recited in claim 22 wherein the user data includes saved gamedata.
 24. A game console as recited in claim 22 wherein the applicationdata includes data to be used during future executions of the associatedapplication.
 25. A game console as recited in claim 22 further includinga console application stored on the hard disk drive, the consoleapplication being configured to generate a list of user data stored inthe first region.
 26. A game console as recited in claim 22 wherein thedisk drive is configured to store a list of recently used nicknames. 27.A method comprising: identifying a game identifier associated with agame installed in a gaming system, wherein the gaming system contains ahard disk drive; determining portions of the hard disk drive that areassociated with the game based on the game identifier; and preventingthe game from accessing portions of the hard disk drive that are notassociated with the game.
 28. A method as recited in claim 27 furtherincluding saving a current state of the game to the hard disk drive inresponse to a save game request.
 29. A method as recited in claim 27further including retrieving a list of saved games associated with thegame installed in the gaming system.
 30. A method as recited in claim 27further including: retrieving a list of saved games associated with thegame installed in the gaming system; and displaying the list of savedgames to a user of the gaming system.
 31. A method as recited in claim27 further including: retrieving a list of saved games associated withthe game installed in the gaming system; displaying the list of savedgames to a user of the gaming system; and executing the game using savedgame data selected by the user of the gaming system.
 32. A method asrecited in claim 27 further including retrieving a list of recently usednicknames.
 33. A method as recited in claim 27 further includingretrieving a list of recently used nicknames associated with the gameinstalled in the gaming system.
 34. A method as recited in claim 27wherein determining portions of the hard disk drive that are associatedwith the game based on the game identifier comprises: determining aportion of a user data region on the hard disk drive that is associatedwith the game; and determining a portion of an application data regionon the hard disk drive that is associated with the game.
 35. One or morecomputer-readable media comprising computer-executable instructionsthat, when executed, perform the method as recited in claim
 27. 36. Amethod comprising: retrieving a list of recently used nicknames in agaming system; displaying the list of recently used nicknames to a userof the gaming system; and allowing the user of the gaming system toselect a nickname from the list of recently used nicknames.
 37. A methodas recited in claim 36 wherein the list of recently used nicknames isassociated with a game installed in the gaming system.
 38. A method asrecited in claim 36 wherein retrieving a list of recently used nicknamesincludes retrieving the list of recently used nicknames from a hard diskdrive in the gaming system.
 39. A method as recited in claim 36 furtherincluding allowing the user of the gaming system to create a newnickname.
 40. A method as recited in claim 36 further including:allowing the user of the gaming system to create a new nickname; andadding the new nickname to the list of recently used nicknames.
 41. Amethod as recited in claim 36 further including automatically enteringthe selected nickname into a high score display.
 42. One or morecomputer-readable media comprising computer-executable instructionsthat, when executed, perform the method as recited in claim
 36. 43. Amethod comprising: booting a game console from a non-removable hard diskdrive integrated into the game console; and storing data associated withthe game console on the hard disk drive.
 44. A method as recited inclaim 43 further including storing a list of recently used nicknames onthe hard disk drive.
 45. A method as recited in claim 43 furtherincluding storing data associated with multiple saved games on the harddisk drive.
 46. A method as recited in claim 43 wherein booting a gameconsole includes booting the game console into a console applicationstored on the hard disk drive.
 47. One or more computer-readable mediacomprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, performthe method as recited in claim
 43. 48. A method comprising: initializinga game console using a non-removable hard disk drive integrated into thegame console, wherein the game console will not operate unless the harddisk drive is functioning; and storing data associated with the gameconsole on the hard disk drive.
 49. A method as recited in claim 48wherein the stored data on the hard disk drive includes data associatedwith multiple saved games.
 50. A method as recited in claim 48 whereininitializing the game console includes launching a console applicationstored on the hard disk drive.
 51. A method as recited in claim 48further including executing a game application installed in the gameconsole after initializing the game console.
 52. One or morecomputer-readable media comprising computer-executable instructionsthat, when executed, perform the method as recited in claim
 48. 53. Amethod comprising: launching an application on a game console;identifying a status of a plurality of temporary storage areas on a harddisk drive contained in the game console; if at least one of theplurality of temporary storage areas is empty, assigning one of theempty storage areas to the application; and if all of the plurality oftemporary storage areas contain data, clearing a temporary storage areahaving an oldest timestamp and assigning the cleared temporary storagearea to the application.
 54. A method as recited in claim 53 wherein theapplication is a game.
 55. A method as recited in claim 53 furtherincluding assigning a particular temporary storage area to theapplication if the particular temporary storage area contains dataassociated with the application.
 56. A method comprising: launching anapplication on a game console; identifying a status of a plurality oftemporary storage areas on a hard disk drive contained in the gameconsole; if a particular temporary storage area contains data associatedwith the application, assigning the particular temporary storage area tothe application; if no temporary storage area contains data associatedwith the application: if at least one of the plurality of temporarystorage areas is empty, assigning one of the empty storage areas to theapplication; and if all of the plurality of temporary storage areascontain data, clearing a temporary storage area having an oldesttimestamp and assigning the cleared temporary storage area to theapplication.
 57. A computer-readable medium for a game consolecomprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed, directthe game console to: associate user data with a first region of a harddisk drive contained in the game console; associate application datawith a second region of the hard disk drive; allow an application toaccess particular portions of the first region that are associated withthe application; and allow the application to access particular portionsof the second region that are associated with the application.
 58. Acomputer-readable medium as recited in claim 57 further comprisingcomputer-executable instructions that, when executed, direct the gameconsole to prevent the application from accessing portions of the firstregion that are not associated with the application.
 59. Acomputer-readable medium as recited in claim 57 further comprisingcomputer-executable instructions that, when executed, direct the gameconsole to prevent the application from accessing portions of the firstregion that are not associated with the application.
 60. Acomputer-readable medium as recited in claim 57 wherein the applicationis a game.